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Radius Ensemble | Epitome
May 16 @ 8:00 pm
| $15 – $35
The anniversary season finale unfolds as the quintessential Radius concert—eclectic and dynamic, each piece the Epitome of its type. The swashbuckling biography of Joseph Bologne, aka the Chevalier de Saint-Georges, belies a sensitive musical voice that comes through in a capstone collection of sonatas for violin and viola, including the opus posthumous B-flat major sonata featured here. Post-modernist par excellence, George Crumb creates a spellbinding and immersive soundscape that recalls the songs of humpback whales in his now classic work Vox balaenae (Voice of the Whale) for amplified flute, cello, and piano. Trademark pulsing and rich harmonies pervade New York Counterpoint for clarinet and tape by minimalist icon Steve Reich. Finally, a new work by hometown hero and longtime friend of Radius, Elena Ruehr, brings the season to a climactic close. Inspired by Mondrian’s painting Broadway Boogie Woogie, the piece includes all members of the ensemble to commemorate 25 years.
CHEVALIER DE SAINT-GEORGES – Sonata for violin and viola in B-flat major, Op. Posth (1800)
GEORGE CRUMB – Vox balaenae (Voice of the Whale) for amplified flute, cello and piano (1971)
STEVE REICH – New York Counterpoint for clarinet and tape (1985)
ELENA RUEHR – New Work for the entire ensemble (2024)
Radius Ensemble’s 2023-2024 concert season – its twenty-fifth – includes music that bridges cultures and spans centuries, with works by seventeen composers, two-thirds women or people of color. The season includes iconic works by masters Stravinsky, Coleridge-Taylor and the Chevalier de Saint-Georges; new classics by Missy Mazzoli, Jennifer Higdon, and Chen Yi; virtuosic solo works by Daniel Bernard Roumain, Shawn Okpebholo and Steve Reich; and old favorites by Luciano Berio and George Crumb. Plus, each concert features a world premiere, including the winner of the thirteenth annual Pappalardo Composition Award, and a commissioned work for the entire ensemble by award-winning Boston composer Elena Ruehr.
